Amber PortwoodandGary Shirley’s teenage daughter is opening up about this chapter in her life.
On the latest episode ofTeen Mom: Next Chapter, the co-parents return to the show’s action with Gary’s wife, Kristina, takingLeah, 14, to the doctor for issues with her period.
Explaining that Leah has agreed to discuss the situation on camera, Kristina tells Gary that the doctor suggested birth control to help Leah with the issues she’s experienced.
“Welcome to parenting a teenager,” she says. “The doctor did give her a good sex education talk along with the birth control pill, that Leah kept saying, ‘I don’t need it for that, it’s just for my period.’ "
“I’m not against her taking it,” Gary says. “I mean, I would prefer it. I’d rather her be safe than sorry because she’s eventually going to be old enough and be more curious, and I don’t want it to be how it was with her mom and I.”
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Gary — who regularly appeared on16 and Pregnantwith Amber while they were together and appeared inTeen Momalongside his wife and his ex — later tells Amber about it, saying, “I’m glad she won’t be like us.”
“I mean, I wish my mom would have thought about that when I was laying on the floor cramping and dying at that age,” she replies.
“I do feel better that at least Leah is getting that and she’s smart and she understands about what sex is and to wait. For me, being a teenaged mom, usually the statistic is that it’ll happen to your children, possibly more so.”
Later, Gary sits down with Leah to discuss the decision and how she feels about it, with the teen assuring, “She explained it to me, how to take it. She gave me a whole talk about everything.”
“Good. But I know you’re not even thinking like that,” Gary says.
“I’m not,” she confirms.
“I’m glad you have that mindset. Guys are sly. They’ll say certain things to make you feel special. You have to keep in mind, as you already are, that if you play, you pay,” he says. “Your mom, she was 17. She was out of high school becauseshe stopped going.”
“So I didn’t mess anything up?”
“No kid, I think you’re good on that,” he assures her. “And it wouldn’t have been you anyway, it would have been us.”
Gary goes on to tell Leah to “be smart,” to which she says, “I’mnot that person. I’m not going to do that, you don’t have to worry about that.”
Teen Mom/Facebook; Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty
“Well I would definitely go talk to Kristina first. It just makes sense because she’s a woman and probably understands more things from thepoint of view I have. And then we’d probably find a way to tell you,” Leah says.
“Conversations about our bodies and sexual things and things like that is always awkward and probably a little bit uncomfortable. You have to have enough trust built up to be able to talk about those things, so I’m really lucky to have Kristina and my dad to talk to and to understand me,” she says.
“I do not think I’d ever be able to have a kid any time soon because my parents were obviously very young. just even thinking about it is really stressful, because I have my own life right now. I have a chance to go to college, a good college if I want, to even have a good career,” the teen, who turns 15 in November, continues.
“I want to be able to have a kid when I have a job and a future that I can look to and not be so young that I am strapped and deprived from that.”
Gary Shirley flexing in a silly pose with daughter Leah Shirley.Gary Shirley/Instagram
Earlier in the episode, Amber reflects on feeling good about howGary and Kristina lead the wayin raising Leah.
“I’m proud of Leah. I know that when Kristina came into the picture that it helped out a lot. The things I used to b—h about — because, you know, as a mom, you want to be in their life, but it was probably better that I kind of stepped back and let them do their thing when I was having that trouble. It was just a mess,” says the mom of two, who also sharesson James, 5, with ex Andrew Glennon.
“I was doing drugs and stuff like that.She could have turned out really different.”
source: people.com
